Apparatus for the production of acetic acid.



M. J. & B. R. LYSTER. APPARATUS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF AGETIO AGID.

APPLICATION F ILED .TAN.16,1909.

Patented Mar. 22, 1910.

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' Application filed January 16,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ldon'ron J. LYsrnR and BENTON R. Lys'rnn, citizens of the United States, residing at Whitefield, in t'he county l of Coos and State of New Hampshire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for the Production of Acetic Acid, of which the following is a specification. 7

ur invention pertains to apparatus for the production of acetic acid in large quantities by destructive distillation of wood. By destructive distillation or" wood is meant, of course, the decomposition of wood by subjecting it to heatin a closed retort or oven, etc. Free access of atmospheric oxygen be-. ing denied, the wood, instead of charring or catching fire, is actually decomposed. If the destructive distillation is properly con ducted, the product issuing from the retort is mainly pyroli neous acid (impure acetic acid). Among'tlie impurities in pyroligne ous acid are various heavy or tarry bodies, and it is desirable, as is well understood, that they be separated from the pyroligneous acid before it is condensed. a

The object of our invention is'to provide, apparatus to be disposed intermediate of and in communication with a retort and a condenser, which will subserve the dual function of efi'ecting: separation of the tarry bodies from the pyroligneous or crude acetic acid, before the pyroligneous acid vapors pass-to the condenser, and of utilizing the heat coming from the retort, in a novel and useful manner, to evaporate part of the water out of liquor charged or neutralized with lime, which is run through our novel evaporator.

With the above objects in view, and other objects appearing as the specification pro resides in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of parts of a device characterized by our invention, as will be fully hereinafter set forth in the specification, summed up in the claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing, which is illustrative of the underlying principles of our invention, and shows one form of embodiment thereof: Figure 1 is a central, vertical, longitudinal section through our apparatus, and Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof.

Referring now in detail to the draw A represents an oven'or retort for the structive distillation of Wood, and B a ing:

Specification of Letters Patent.

denser. As these parts form no portion of disposed beneath the rema tom, and may be advanta portion may be of vaporizing any may be condensed by contact with our evap' orator (hereinafter described used hereinaftert do ,cause the tarry heavy bodies,

Patented sitar. F323, itt'riida 1909. Serial N0. 472,675.

our inventiomand as they may be of the usual. and well known, or of any preferred, construction, detailed description. and illustration thereof are deemed superfluous.

Intermediate the retort and the condenser is'the evaporating and separating apparatus constituting the subject-matter of our invention, and which may be described in the following manner: A passageway, or chamber or vessel C, of any appropriate or desired configuration and preferably constructed of copper, is disposed between the retort A and the condenser E (advantageously near to or at the top thereof, as shown in the drawing) and is in communication therewith suitable manner, in-this instance, as by tubular sections 0 7 in any shown, 0, terminating in annular flanges c bolted .to corresponding flanges c on similar sections 0 0 carried by the retort A and the condenser B, respectively. A portion 0 of the bottom of the chamber C inay be and preferably is inder of the botgeously furnished with outlet-pipes 0 a communicating at their lower extremities with condensingworms 0, disposed in water-receptacles 0", 0 A steam-coil disposed insaid provided for the purpose low-boiling liquids that Let into the top of the vessel C and supported thereby is an evaporating-receptacle, of any suitable contour, in this instance shown as a pan D-.

(open topped or closed, as desired pro vided with an outlet d, serving as an overflow to pass the acetate to the final evaporator or drier (not shown). Within the chamber 0 and depending from the panD and in communication therewith are waterlegs or tubes d, with which communicates an inlet-pipe 0F, and which communicate with each other by means of short sections of pipe d The pan D and the legs 03 consti tute our evaporator, and the latter term is o designate these parts of our invention. Above :the'apparatus is a tank (a for holding liquid, and depending therefrom isa pipe 3/ in communication with the pipe (Z 'nder some conditions of use, the fall of the temperature caused by the legs (1 andthe pan D is not sufficient to to condense and separate out in the chamber (3, and,

downward. before entering the condenser B, 8.0 that the tarry bodies are thrown into the pprtion c whence they pass off through the therefore, we have devised the idea of providing spaced, open-ended, vertical fines E, which may extend, in the rear of the legs d, transversely of the interior of the chamber C and communicate,'at both ends, with the atmosphere exterior of said chamber. It

-'will be seen that air may circulate through these lines, still'further to condense the pro.- ducts coming from the retort A. Clo the rear of the tines E, we desirably provide one or more baffies or deflectors F (one thereof shown in the drawing), depending from the top and. extending transversely of the chamher 6 and terminating short of the bottom thereof, which serve to direct the products pipes '0 into the worms 0, c. The particular function of the pipe 0 is to receive the tar that condenses from the vapors and throng bhamher G, where they pass around the .Water legs d, which latter cool the vapors and gases sufficiently to allow the tar oils to separate out therefrom; but the vapors or gases are not cooled to a point where the water, acid and alcohol Wlll condense out of the vapor in any considerable quantity. The fines E (if used) operate to still further cool and condense the gaseous products issuing from the retort, and assist in se a rating out the tar oils. After passing ctween the spacedflues E, the products strike the baffle F, and are deflected downward thereby, so that the tarry products are thrown into the portion a (c .mstituting a trap for sald tarry products), anoiwill not pass into the condenser E;- the vapor and gases continuing their travel onward into the condenser B. It will be understood that the tarry products ,condense very much easier than the other fractions of the vapor, and require less than one-third of the cooling necessary to condense them into liquid that is required by the.othcr portions. alVhile the vapor and gases are passing through the vessel C, liquor-pyroligncolis acid which has been neutralized by lime which is held in the supply-tank w, is fed down. in a small stream through the pipe 3 and communicating ipe d whence it circulates up through the egs d into the pan 1), and passes out through the exit-pipe d toflanother evaporator or drier (not shown). It will be recognized that the said charged liquor is run through an evaporator for two eeaeao important purposes, namely: First": that part of the water may be evaporated out of the said liquor, or the heated liquor passed to an ordinary stea1n-jackctcd evaporatingpan; second: that the vapors and gases from the retort A passiug'around the coils of the evaporator shall be cooled sufiiciently to allow the tar-oils to separate out from the vapor.

'lhe steam-coil 0 vaporizes any lowboiling liquids that may be condensed by sudden cooling of the evaporator; and this vapor, so produced, will pass into the eondenser B with the other vapors and gases. It will he understood, of course, thatthe action of the steam-coil c is not such as to vaporize the tar, which is trapped in the portion 0*".

Many changes and modifications in detail will suggest themselves, especially to hose skilled in the art to which this invention appertains; but all such modifications and changes, within the scope of the appendedclaims, constitute no departure from the spirit of the invention and come within the scope and purview thereof.

Having thus fully described our invention, w hat we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters-Patent is":

1. In apparatus for the production of pyroligneous acid, the combination with a retort and a condenser, of a chamber disposed therebetween and communicating therewith,

liquid-heating and vapor-condensing means projecting into said. chamber in the path of the gases passing therethrough, and comprising a receptacle let into the top of said ice communicating with said receptacle, and an inletpipe' communicating with said legs.

2. In apparatus for the production of pyroligneous acid, the combination with a re tort and a condenser, or a-chamber disposed therebetwecn andcommunicating therewith, liquid-heating and vapor-condensing means projecting into said chamber in the path of the gases passing therethrough, and com prising a receptacle let into the top of said chamber, water-legs depending therefrom and communicating therewith, branch-pipes disposed between the legs and communicating therewith, whereby all the legs communicate one with the other, an outlet-pipe communicating with said receptacle, an inlet-pipe space open-ended flues dis osed 1n said chamber to the rear of said legs and communicating at both ends with the exterior atmosphere.

3. In apparatus for the production of pyroligneous acid, the combination with a recommunicating with said legs; and

tort and a condenser, of a chamber disposed therebetween and communicating therewith,

disposed between he legs and communicating therewith, whereby all the legs com municate one with the other, an outlet-pipe communicating with said receptacle, an inlet-pipe communicating with said legs; spaced, open-ended fiues disposed in said chamber to the rear of said legs and com-v amuse.

mimicating at both ends with the exterior atmosphere, a portion of the bottom of said chamber, to the rear of said flues, being depressed; an outlet-pipe leading from said depressed; portion; a worm carried by the 1:

lower extremity of said pipe; and a. receptacle surrounding said worm.

In testimony whereof we aflix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

' MORTON J. LYSTER. BENTON R. LYSTER;

Witnesses:

WELLS G. HADLEY, WILLIAM H. COLBATH. 

